About 30 minutes and nearly 100 miles apart, Giants quarterback Daniel Jones and Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz both stood in front of a media horde and answered questions about a problem that, they admit, needs fixing.
That is: ball security.
Fumbling has been a problem that has plagued Wentz since his rookie season in 2016, and Jones is on his way down a similar trajectory.
In Week 11 against the Patriots, Wentz coughed up the ball in a costly play that turned into three New England points in an eventual seven-point loss. Since 2016, Wentz has fumbled the ball 37 times, second only to Buccaneers turnover stalwart Jameis Winston, who has fumbled it 43 times.
“I think they’re case-by-case,” Wentz told reporters at NovaCare Complex in Philadelphia on Wednesday. “It’s always something, you know, you come back and it’s ‘ok, I could’ve got rid of the ball there, or I should’ve just ate the sack, or whatever.’”
As a rookie in 2016, Wentz fumbled the ball 14 times in 16 games, in addition to throwing 14 interceptions.
Jones already has fumbled it 13 times in nine games, with eight interceptions. To Jones’ credit -- like Wentz later in his career -- he’s already shown improvement with interceptions, throwing 10 touchdowns to only two interceptions over the last four games.
Still, in that stretch, he’s also fumbled it 10 times.
There are plenty of areas that Jones would be smart to learn from Wentz. Ball security, clearly, is not one of them.
Jones acknowledged it’s a problem he needs to address after practice on Wednesday at Quest Diagnostics Center
“There’s certainly a number of things that I need to work on,” Jones said. “But, yeah, that’s definitely one of them, and it probably is the most critical thing that I need to correct, so I’ll work on that.”
Even as the Giants try to fight their way out of a six-game losing streak, Jones is actually playing some of the best football of his young career, especially as he builds chemistry with talented rookie receiver Darius Slayton and Golden Tate.
Over the last four weeks, Jones has 1,063 passing yards, 10 touchdowns, two interceptions and a 64.9 completion percentage.
Now, it’s just those pesky fumbles.
Jones insists it’s not something mental keeping him from securely holding onto the ball.
“I think it’s something that I need to be mindful of constantly,” Jones said. “It’s not like a golf swing or something where you—it’s about being mindful of it and being aware in the pocket, protecting it and getting the ball out on time. I think all those things are important for me to stay mindful of.”
Giants coach Pat Shurmur doesn’t even think all of the blame for the fumbles falls on Jones’ shoulders, actually.
“There isn’t a common denominator,” Shurmur said on Wednesday. "It’s not something that can’t be corrected. But much like when you get turnovers on defense, the same thing can be said when you give up the ball on offense. It’s certainly the ultimate responsibility of whoever’s touching the ball to make sure he does the right thing with it.
"But everyone around him has to do the right things as well.”
For Wentz, while fumbling is still an issue the 26-year-old hasn’t quite solved, it has at least gotten slightly better since his rookie year. He finished both 2017 and 2018 with nine fumbles and is on track for eight in 2019.
“He knows he’s got to protect the football,” Eagles coach Doug Pederson said last season. “We talk about it.
"We just have to keep on it.”
Wentz and Jones are at different stages of their careers, but stuck in one area.
The fumbling has to stop.
Who will get it fixed first?
Zack Rosenblatt may be reached at zrosenblatt@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @ZackBlatt. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
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November 21, 2019 at 06:25PM
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Giants’ Daniel Jones and Eagles’ Carson Wentz have this thing in common (and it’s not good) - NJ.com
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